In Times of Crisis, What’s a Pediatrician to Do?

Pediatricians have always helped children and their families at times of greatest need. The terrorist attacks that began on September 11 provide an unprecedented challenge—and opportunity—for the pediatric community to continue this tradition.

We must first acknowledge that we have been, and will continue to be, impacted directly—and uniquely—by these events and their aftermath. Although at one level, this is a shared experience, it is fundamentally a very personal one. If we feel overwhelmed or disempowered, we may deny or even fail to see many of the problems. If instead we see, even in the setting of a crisis, opportunities to help children and families, we will actively seek out ways to provide such assistance.

An organized crisis response requires: plans for optimizing physical safety and security, rapid dissemination of accurate and appropriate information, …

Reprint requests to (D.J.S.) Department of Pediatrics, Yale University School of Medicine, 333 Cedar St, Box 208064, New Haven, CT 06520-8064. Email: david.schonfeld{at}yale.edu